Notes and Links:

Apple supplier Largan has confirmed it will be shipping its new 3D sensors in time for iPhone 8, while another has confirmed waterproofing and wireless charging technology.

Largan’s sensors are capable of carrying out facial and iris recognition and provide an alternative to fingerprint scanning. They could be the solution Apple turns to if it is unable to embed a Touch ID scanner beneath the iPhone 8’s display.

iPhone 7 and iPhone 7 Plus models are already splash- and water-resistant with an IP67 rating, but Apple’s fine print warns that “splash, water, and dust resistance are not permanent conditions and resistance might decrease as a result of normal wear.” iPhone water damage is not covered by Apple’s warranties.

But in Wednesday’s shareholders meeting, [Robert] Hwang, [Wistron CEO] told reporters that the Assembly process for the previous generations of [iPhones] have not changed much, though new features like waterproof and wireless charging now require some different testing, and waterproof function will alter the assembly process a bit,”

A report earlier this year said Apple’s next iPhone models will feature improved IP68-rated water resistance (30 minutes in up to 3 feet of water)

Apple this week refreshed its MacBook Pro lineup with Intel’s seventh-generation Kaby Lake processors, and early benchmarks for the notebooks suggest the 2017 models are up to 20 percent faster than the equivalent 2016 models equipped with Intel’s sixth-generation Skylake processors.

One of the big improvements of the new iPad Pro is its new variable refresh rate display, which Apple calls ProMotion, and means that it can run at 120Hz, or twice as fast as previous displays. It can also cycle down to 24Hz on still images.

ARS has praised the new ProMotion by saying that it makes it easier to read text and scroll simultaneously, with the “ghosting” effect you get at 60Hz greatly reduced

What everyone agrees on is that the new A10x processor is blazingly fast

Smart keyboard is getting mixed reviews. Some saying it feels flimsy and unsatisfying to type on.

Uses the newest Touch ID.

Dramatically better antireflection coating.

About 30% faster than 9.7inch iPad Pro, even more on multicore Geekbench tests I saw. Export times in Garage Band almost halved in some cases.

Way better front (7MPX) and back cameras (12MPX), especially from the previous 12inch which had a 1.2 MPX camera.

A few websites have now gotten the chance to hear how HomePod sounds in a quiet environment, and they’re sharing their opinions online.

Mashable: The audio wasn’t just loud — filling a room with sound, good or bad, is easy — it was rich.

Mashable noted that Apple had in-room comparisons with its competitors, including Sonos Play:3 and Amazon Echo, and that the HomePod easily beat the two other speakers in pure music playback quality.

CNET: HomePod came off as bolder and more vivid than Sonos Play:3 in the [listening] experience, and a lot better than Amazon Echo. I’d also say the music sounded consistently vivid and crisp in a quiet space

What HiFi: We also heard a pair of HomePods playing a live recording of Hotel California by The Eagles. The attention to detail was striking, with different instruments sounding discretely realised.

Engadget called HomePod’s audio “incredible,”

if listening to the HomePod was like listening to a CD, then audio through the Echo sounded like AM radio.